The beloved stars have changed a lot in the last 30 years — find out what they are doing now!
“The flashy girl from flushing, the nanny named Fran!” When you’d hear that signature, nasally voice emitting from your television, you knew you were in for a treat. Fran Drescher played the iconic character of Fran Fine from 1993 to 1999, and she and the rest of the cast of The Nanny have changed quite a bit between then and now!
What was The Nanny about?
When a down-on-her-luck diva named Fran Fine from Queens gets dumped by her bridal shop owner boyfriend, she finds herself at the doorstep of a wealthy Broadway producer attempting to sell cosmetics. In desperate need of a nanny for his three children, Brighton (Benjamin Salisbury), Gracie (Madeline Zima) and Maggie (Nicholle Tom), Fran is offered the job, though her style is a bit contrary to that of the wealthy, high-class Mr. Sheffield (Charles Shaughnessy).
The series follows Fran as she navigates this new occupation, as well as the hilarious cast of characters she often finds herself at odds with. Along the way, despite her quirks, Mr. Sheffield and his family learn to love and embrace Fran for who she is.
The Nanny cast is like family
Over the years, the cast of The Nanny have come together various times, showing fans that the bonds they created on the series were one-of-a-kind. Charles Shaughnessy shared a photo to his Facebook of him, Fran Drescher and Renee Taylor, who played the role of Sylvia Fine, Fran’s fabulously funny mother.
The caption read, “An evening with the mother in law! Happy Birthday Renee!!” With the original success of the show, it’s understandable why diehard fans were so thrilled to see the trio together once again years later!
News on The Nanny reboot
In May of 2023, Drescher went on SiriusXM’s The Julie Mason Show, revealing that a reunion was on the horizon. “At least pre-strike, we were in conversations with Sony, our parent company, to figure out what we could do that would be fun and exciting for the fans to tune into,” Drescher said. “Hopefully the strike will be over soon enough, a deal can be forged with the Writers Guild and the [Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers], and we’ll be able to go back to figuring out what we want to do for a Nanny kind of reunion.”
Until then, you can watch every season of The Nanny on COZI TV — and they will also be airing a special marathon in October to celebrate the show’s 30th anniversary.
And here, catch up with the The Nanny cast and see what they’re up to now!
Fran Drescher as Fran Fine
In addition to The Nanny, the comedienne is known for her starring roles on sitcoms Living With Fran and Happily Divorced. She has also appeared in movies Saturday Night Fever, Stranger in Our House, Gorp, This Is Spinal Tap and The Beautician and the Beast. Currently, she serves as the president of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.
Charles Shaughnessy as Maxwell Sheffield
In addition to The Nanny, Charles Shaughnessy is also known for playing Shane Donovan on the soap opera Days of Our Lives, as well as General Hospital.
“I think we just knew how to play off each other,” Shaughnessy said of Drescher in an interview with Entertainment Tonight. “We trusted each other, we enjoyed each other…and it took off like a rocket.”
Ann Morgan Guilbert as Yetta Rosenberg
In addition to The Nanny, Ann starred on TV shows like The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Andy Griffith Show, Love, American Style, Dragnet, Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. The actress sadly died at age 87 in June 2016.
Daniel Davis as Niles
The actor — who is known for portraying British characters onscreen, despite being American — is most recognized for playing butler Niles on The Nanny and for his guest appearances as Professor Moriarty on Star Trek: The Next Generation. “I think the appeal for the character of Niles has always been that he says what other people are thinking and afraid to say. He’s fearless in that regard and just says whatever is on his mind, especially to miss Babcock,” he said to Blog Critics.
Lauren Lane as C.C. Babcock
Though Lauren is most known for her supporting role on The Nanny, she has also acted in Interface and Gen¹³ and on TV shows Hunter and L.A. Law. Her last credited acting role was in 2019’s Dress Code.
Nicholle Tom as Maggie Sheffield
In addition to The Nanny, Nicholle is most recognized for portraying Ryce Newton in the Beethoven film and TV franchise and for voicing Supergirl in the animated series DC Animated Universe. In 2022, she acted in Prisoner of Love.
Benjamin Salisbury as Brighton Sheffield
Benjamin has starred in movies like Captain Ron, D3: The Mighty Ducks and on TV shows such as The Oz Kids and Numb3rs. He’s also appeared in a series of Domino’s Pizza commercials and was once a contestant on Jeopardy!
Madeline Zima as Gracie Sheffield
Madeline is most known for playing Gracie on The Nanny, Mia Lewis on Californication and Gretchen Berg on Heroes. She has additionally starred in movies The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, A Cinderella Story, Legacy and The Collector. Her most recent credits range across various TV shows such as Doom Patrol and NCIS: Hawaii. “Even though I was working before ‘The Nanny,’ playing Grace was a career-defining role. It was a good education,” she told Digital Journal.
Renee Taylor as Sylvia Fine
Renée is known for being an actress, director, and Oscar-nominated writer. Her acting credits include The Producers, Made for Each Other, Delirious, Dream On, Daddy Dearest, How I Met Your Mother and Happily Divorced. “We had a good time. We broke ourselves up at rehearsal, and I didn’t know that other people would react to it the way we did,” Taylor told Broadway World. “But Fran says that if The Nanny comes back [to television], she’s gonna play me, her mother, and I’m gonna play the grandmother. So that’ll be the next incarnation of it…That’s our intention, so I don’t see why it wouldn’t happen. As long as we’re young and healthy. She looks great. She is the age that I was when I played her mother.”
